Saliva Test Kits for Malaria

Scientists at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) are developing a kit to test malaria from saliva and are hoping it may be available in a few years, allAfrica.com reported Friday.

“Use of saliva would be popular because the procedure is not invasive. Furthermore the diagnostic tool under development would be capable of quantifying parasite density,” commented lead researcher Eva Aluvaala.

Aluvaala noted that current blood tests “cannot quantify parasite density, which is important when trying to assess the severity of disease and whether or not a patient is responding to therapy.”

A study of the test began in February this year and is being sponsored by the Canadian government and ends August next year.